Storage type wire drawing machine



Aug. 15, 1961 c. o. BRUESTLE STORAGE TYPE WIRE DRAWING MACHINE 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed March 9, 1953 INVENTOR.

Z0. Brwesfle 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 I NVE N TOR.

ATTORNEYS- C. O. BRUESTLE Aug. 15, 1961 STORAGE TYPE WIRE DRAWING MACHINE Filed March 9, 1953 CarZO.Brae5[c i a Aug. 15, 1961 c. o. BRUESTLE 2,996,170

STORAGE TYPE WIRE DRAWING MACHINE Filed March 9, 1953 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Aug. 15, 1961 c. o. BRUESTLE 2,996,170

STORAGE TYPE WIRE DRAWING MACHINE Filed March 9, 1953 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 I 1 [o 100 x H, EV

i\'\ F \xi H 3 T INVENTOR. CarZ'O.BvaesZe ATTORNEYS 5, 1961 c. o. BRUES'TLE 2,996,170

STORAGE TYPE WIRE DRAWING MACHINE Filed March 9, 1953 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 2,996,170 STORAGE TYPE WIRE DRAWING MACHINE Carl O. Bruestle, Metuchen, N.J., assignor to Syncro Machine Company, Perth Amboy, N.J., a corporation of New Jersey Filed Mar. 9, 1953, Ser. No. 340,987 Claims. (Cl. 205-14) This invention relates to a wire drawing machine of the storage type having provision for automatic winding and unwinding to control the accumulation of wire on the several blocks thereof.

It is a fundamental object of the instant invention to provide a machine which will automatically keep track of the number of convolutions in a given block and upon developing a certain number will automatically unwind to reduce the number to an operating margin.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will in part be obvious and in part appear hereinafter.

The invention accordingly is embodied in a differential storage type wire drawing machine including automatic provision on the blocks to regulate the amount of wire which may be accumulated at the several stages thereof, the invention being embodied in the machine containing features of construction, combinations of elements and arrangement of parts hereafter to be set forth in greater detail.

In the drawings illustrating the machine:

FIGURE 1 represents a side elevation of the machine showing the arrangements of the drive, base and the blocks.

FIGURE 2 is a transverse sectional elevation on the line 2-2 of the machine showing the relationship of the same parts illustrated in FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 3 is a detailed view partially in section, along the line 33 of FIGURE 2, of a typical stage in the machine showing the block and the gearing mechanism.

FIGURE 4 is a plan view of the block details as shown in FIGURE 3.

FIGURE 5 is a detailed sectional view of some of the gearing shown in FIGURE 4.

FIGURE 6 is a general circuit diagram for control of the machine.

Referring to FIGURES 1 and 2, 10 represents the motor which is the prime mover for the apparatus which is connected by a drive 11 to shaft 12, the main drive shaft of the machine, which is carried in bearings like 11. The shaft is supported by the vertical supports 14-14 of the machine, which also carry a horizontal support 15 and a plurality of other horizontal supports 16, 17 and 18 to define the working table or base of the machine. The superstructure 19 mounted on this base of the machine is used as a support for sheaves 21, 22, 23 to receive the wire as it passes through its several stages.

Mounted on the working table of the machine are the blocks 24, 25, 26 and the final accumulating block 27, each of the stages 24, 25 and 26 being identical, 27 merely being the block for receiving the finished wire. Between each of the stages there will be a drawing die, indicated as 30, 31, 32, 33 for the reduction in diameter of the wire 34, the details thereof being shown in FIGURE 3. Each block is indicated in FIGURE 1 only in general form and the superstructure 35, 36, 37 on each is also generally indicated, for the details thereof are shown in FIGURES 3 and 4 and 5 in the detailed exposition of that aspect of the invention.

The drive for each block is the same and takes its power through a belt 40 which passes around a pulley to drive the shaft 41 carried in bearings 42 and 43 which in turn are mounted on supports 44 and 45 sus- Patented Aug. 15, 1961 ice pended from the working table surface of the machine. The shaft 41 drives the gear 50, which meshes with the gear 51, which is the drive gear for the vertical shaft 70. The shaft 70, gear 51 and drive structure corresponding to the block 24 are carried by the table 18. Inasmuch as the drive for each of the blocks 25 and 26 is the same as the drive for the block 24, the parts thereof having been numbered the same but carry primes.

In FIGURE 2 the relationship of the several parts of the machine, the driving units and the like may be determined by inspection of the figure, which is a section taken at a typical vertical plane corresponding to 2-2 in FIGURE 1.

In FIGURE 3 which may be considered a detailed showing of the structure of any one of the blocks 24, 25 or 26, the figure includes 'a representation of a die carried on the working base of the machine and some additional details of the structure of the block are shown in section. The drive mechanism between the working base of the machine is the same as that shown in FIG- URE l and has been numbered to correspond to the structure associated with the block 24. Thus, though the block itself is numbered 24 in FIGURE 3, it may be considered a typical section through either blocks 24, 25 or 26. It will be seen from the figure that the block 24 has a central shaft 52, which is stationary and is carried through beyond the immediate top of the block 24 to a level such that the superstructure corresponding to the mechanism and controlling elements may be carried thereon. The shaft 52 is fastened to bracket 60 and held in fixed position by it.

-At the working table of the machine, a circular collar 61 surrounds the block, which collar serves as a guide for directing an air blast against the hot wire first meeting the block.

The sheave 62 is mounted on the table of the machine in a die holder 63 fastened to the machine at 64 and a wire 34 passes around the sheave and through the die 66 held in the holders 67. The wire is then fed to the bottom of the block where it is wound and as the number of convolutions on the block increases the amount of wire thereon is built up to the operating level.

The mechanism in section in FIGURE 3, mounted on the axis of the block above the block itself serves to control the operation of the machine and the amount of build-up per block. That is, when the wire passes through the several stages of the machine, the reductions in diameter produce progressively increased lengths. To provide for this the machine is operated so that each block produces more Wire in pounds than the succeeding one can require. In the instant case, the control of the amount of build-up on a block is by means of a counting mechanism which permits the accumulation of a specified number of extra loops on the block. Upon the accumulation of this number of loops, the power magnetic clutch activating that stage and the clutches driving preceding stages are stopped and the machine is permitted to unwind. The last block which is stopped then serves as the pay-off reel for succeeding blocks.

The control mechanism for regulating the accumulation on a given block is shown in detail in FIGURES 3, 4 and 5.

Referring to FIGURE 3, the bracket 60 is stationary and mounted on the Working base 18 of the machine. It carries firmly fixed thereto a vertical stationary shaft 52 which serves as a central mounting axis for the block 24 and the control mechanism for the device.

The block 24 may be of conventional form and is keyed to the rotatable hollow shaft 70 at 71. The shaft is mounted in bearings 72 to be driven by the gear 51.

3 At the upper end of the mechanism the shaft 70 is held in spaced relation to the shaft 52 by bearing 73 and fixed to the shaft 70 is a short sleeve 74. It is fastened between the block 24 and collar 75. Sleeve 74, which rotates with shaft 70 and block 24, carries a flange 74 at its lower end which forms a small brake drum 76. Mounted concentrically with sleeve 74 is a sleeve 80, on bearings 81, and fastened to sleeve 80 is disk 82, which disk is rotatable with respect to the stationary shaft 52 and also with respect to the shaft 70. Engagement of disk 82 and brake band 76 is made through pin 82. The disk 82 carries mounted thereon a bracket 83 which carries a sheave 34 to serve as a guide for a strand of wire taken from the block 24.

The upper end of the sleeve 80 carries a gear 90 fastened thereto, which meshes with gear 91 which drives a shaft 92 passing up through bearing 93 and disk 94 to worm 95. The worm 95 drives worm gear 96 (shown in plan view in FIGURE 4) which in turn drives shaft 97 to drive a second worm 100. The worm 100 actuates the worm gear 101 which worm gear carries on the upper face thereof a friction lining 110. The extremes of revolution of the pin 102 cause it to engage a lever 103 which carries button 104 to manipulate actuator 105 to make or break the circuit in the switch mechanism 106, which is mounted on the disk 94 at 107. The position of the pin 102 shown in full lines in FIGURE 4 is the position in which it causes disengagement of the switch for the magnetic clutch of the particular block of which it is a part. At the opposite extreme of its rotation where the pin is shown in dotted lines and numbered 102' the switch is closed.

Details of the structure shown in FIGURE 4 appear in FIGURE 5, which is a view taken along the line -5 in FIGURE 4 and therein the parts which are shown in FIGURE 4 also appear. It will be seen that the lever 103 for the switch has two parallel sections in different planes, one of which engages the pin 102 and the other of which is on a lower parallel plane and engages the switch itself. These are connected by a vertical section in the arm.

The pin 102 is carried by the flanged sleeve 110 which is mounted on an axis 101 and connected in essentially conventional manner to the disk 94 for allowing adjustment of the machine and to bring the operation of the machine to the point where a desired amount of accumulation at a. given stage is required. The gear 101 is made to drive flange 110, which is carried by the collar 111 and held on the axis 101 by means of an adjustable spring 112 and nut 113. The degree of pressure by spring 112 on the flange 110 causes compression of the friction liner 110 which engages the face of the gear 101. The usefulness of this arrangement is in the initial adjustment of the machine when it is operated to accumulate a certain number of turns per block.

Necessary electrical connections to the counter are made by passing the wires up through the stationary hollow shaft 52.

In FIGURE 6 there is disclosed a general circuit diagram for the control of the machine and in order that the circuit may be directly related to the machine as shown in FIGURE 1 numerical designations are taken from the machine and applied to the figure. Thu the motor is identified as 10, magnetic clutches identified as 13 and the limit switches controlling the respective blocks 24, 25, 26 are designated with these digits.

The layout of the circuit may be traced generally for the power source is a conventional 3-phase source driving a motor and power is taken through transformer to separate rectifiers and clutch units. Individual switches are included in the circuit to provide for a selective operation of any one of the stages when the machine is being readied for operation.

In the physical machine itself the stationary shaft 52 is hollow and electrical connection is made to the switch and counting mechanism mounted at the top of the several blocks by passing wires up through the hollow shaft.

Operation of the machine Fundamental to the operation of a machine of this kind for drawing wire is the consideration that the machine must accumulate wire at a given stage faster than it is required by the'succeeding stage. This means that, for example, in FIGURE 1 block 24 must accumulate wire faster than it is required by block 25 and in turn block 25 must accumulate wire faster than it is required by block 26. When conditions are so stabilized the only tension on the wire is that caused by the pulling of the block 24 on the wire as it passes through the die immediately preceding that block.

In FIGURE 1, the course of wire being drawn is sketched and it will be seen that the wire passes through a die, makes turns around the block 24, passes up through and out and over the guide 24 (corresponding to sheave 84 in FIGURE 3) up over a sheave 21 on the overhead frame of the machine, down through a guide sheave and through a second die 31. Turns are accumulated on the second block, the wire passing therefrom through guide 25' up over a second guide sheave 22 and down through the third die 32. It makes turns around the third block therefrom to pass over the next guide sheave and therefrom to the final block or reel.

For equilibrating operation of the machine, it is desirable therefore to permit the accumulation of a certain number of excess turns per block and when the accumulation reaches the upper limit of that tolerated, stages prior to the block which reaches the full complement of accumulated wire are disconnected and the block carrying its full complement of accumulation is used for a payoff of the following stages.

The problem is a familiar one in the art of Wire drawing and a conventional solution has been to rely upon an operator to watch his machine and upon observing that the accumulation on a given block has reached an apparent limit, to disconnect the preceding stages and pay off the excess. This practice has the disadvantage that it relies too heavily upon the judgment and close attention of an operator and, for this reason, the structure shown in detail in FIGURES 3, 4 and 5 has been provided to count an exact number of accumulated loops on a block and, upon accumulation, of that number to activate the switch which decouples the magnetic coupling, driving the given stage, thereby permitting that block to function as a payoff. Thus, for example, when block 24 accumulates the preset number of excess turns the switch is activated and the magnetic coupling for the first stage is disconnected while block 24 serves as a payoff reel for block 25. Where the excess accumulation occurs in block 25 the switch in the control mechanism there disconnects the magnetic coupling for block 25 and for the preceding block 24 and payofi occurs from the block 25.

The means by which this is accomplished is embodied in the counting mechanism mounted on the two disks embodied in the worm gear connections and the electrical switch. Referring to FIGURE 3, by means of a preestablished gear ratio among these several parts, the disk 82 is made movable with respect to the stationary shaft and the sleeve shaft carrying the rotating block 24. Thus the block 24 rotates to take wire through the die 66 and, as indicated, it accumulates wire faster than wire is called for by the succeeding block. Since the wire is fed over the sheave 84 the rate of accumulation is such that the disk 82 is carried around in the direction of accumulation at a rate slower than the rate of the revolution of the block 24. Brake band 76' contacts pin 82 and, if the rate of payoff of wire from block 24 exactly equalled the rate of accumulation, disk 82 would be stationary. Since there is accumulation of wire, disk 82 is rotated in the direction of block 24 at the rate of accumulation. As the disk 82 is carried around it drives the gear 90 which in turn drives the pinion 91 and that in turn drives worm 95 which drives worm gear 96, which in turn drives the worm gear 101 for operating the switch. By means of an appropriately selected gear ratio, an accurate preselected number of excess accumulated revolutions on block 24 will produce a full rotation of the gear 101 to activate the switch and indicate the final accumulation of the full quota of loops on the block 24.

When this occurs, the magnetic coupling 13 for the block is disconnected and the block then serves as a payofi. As the wire is fed to the rest of the machine, the disk 82 is rotated in the opposite direction from that of accumulation and ultimately when the full quota of excess loops is paid oil, the pin 102 is brought around a full revolution to the opposite extreme of its two positions and it there activates the switch to recouple the magnetic coupling and puts the block 24 back into operation.

Where each block of the machine is established with a counting mechanism, which mechanism is in turn coupled into the electrical power circuit to the machine, it becomes possible to have complete continuous automatic operation of the drawing machine through any number of stages and at the same time to control accurately the amount of accumulated wire of any given stage. The fundamental requirement for the amount of accumulation of wire is the rather practical rule that sufficient wire should be accumulated at a given stage to permit it to cool adequately before being fed to the next stage. By accurately controlling the cooling, the wire is produced at the finished end of the machine with the preselected required set of physical properties.

Though the invention has been described in connection with only a single embodiment of the machine, the principle of the machine will be understood and variations thereof may be made without departing from the scope or the spirit of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. In a multi-stage dilferential storage type of wire drawing machine having a plurality of rotatable wire storage blocks, which successively supply wire from one 6 to another and on each of which a predetermined number of wire turns are accumulated, and means including clutches for driving said blocks simultaneously, the improvement comprising means including actuators rotatable relatively to the associated blocks for counting the actual number of turns accumulated on each block, andmeans actuated by said counting means every time the predetermined number of turns of wire have accumulated on one of said blocks for disengaging the clutch of that block and the clutches of all blocks supplying wire to it.

2. In a wire drawing machine in accordance with claim 1, means for re-engaging said disengaged clutches every time a predetermined number of Wire turns have been removed from said one block.

3. In a Wire drawing machine in accordance with claim 1, said counting means comprising a counting mechanism mounted on each of said blocks and operated by the wire as it passes from block to block.

4. In a wire drawing machine in accordance with claim 1, said counting means comprising a counting mechanism mounted on each of said blocks, and means comprising part of each counting mechanism engaged by the wire in passing from the associated block to the next for actuating the counting mechanism of the block from which it passes.

S. In a wire drawing machine in accordance with claim 1, said counting means comprising a counting mechanism mounted on each of said blocks, each counting mechanism comprising a fixed section and a relatively movable section including said actuator having a wire guide engaged by the wire passing from the associated block to the next.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,029,206 Williams Jan. 28, 1936 2,272,192 Fisher Feb. 10, 1942 2,272,195 George et al Feb. 10, 1942 2,341,688 Bruestle Feb. 15, 1944 2,370,481 Morgan Feb. 27, 1945 2,609,159 Nye Sept. 2, 1952 

